Mailing device



G. P. LEE

MAILING DEVICE Nov. 29, 1938.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 17, 1937 mvEN-roR @e0/ye Ill/ee d ATT RNEY Nov. 29, 1938.

Filed Aug. 1'7, 193'? G. P. LEE 2,138,250

MAILING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR A TORNEY infestedv rig'. 29, 193s UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE 8.138,25! MAILING nmol:

GeorgcPJiee, New York. N. Y., alsiguorto East- Company ern Manufacturinga corporation of Maine New York, N. Y.,

Application August 17, 1937, Serial No. 159,452

9 (Anims. (Cl. 228-02.!)

'Ihe present invention relates to a direct mail advertising device and it particularly relates-to a direct mail device in the form of a letter, which may be sent through the mails in a window envelope and which will tend to assure a high percentage of responses from the prospective customers.

In the usual type of direct mail advertisment designed for securing and facilitating inquiries or responses, the envelope contains an advertising message in the form of a letter-sheet and enclosed in the envelope with the letter sheet are return mailing pieces or elements which are to be illled out by the recipient of the advertising message and be returned to the advertiser. l It is among the objects of the present invention to provide an improved direct mail advertising device of the character described which will be of novel character and construction, which will tend to immediately arouse the interest of the prospective customer or addressee and which will tend to assure a higher percentage of returns to the advertiser.

Another object is to provide an improved direct mail advertising device which may be distributed in large quantities at lower addressing expense and which will permit an extensive direct mail advertising campaign without requiring more than a single application of the name and address of the prospect on each piece.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a direct mail advertising device which may be readily enclosed in a Window envelope and in which the addressees name need only be applied once toassure delivery of the main advertising message to the customer or addressee and the return of the message of the addressee, without need of further addressing and with a minimum of labor necessary on the part of such addressee.

In accomplishing the above objects, it has been found most satisfactory to form a letter-sheet designed to carry the advertising message, which letter-sheet may be arranged to carry the enclosure or the return mailing piece in such a manner that the name and address of the customer on the return mailing piece will serve both as a salutation on the letter and the forwarding address of the prospective customer or addressee, and also the return address or signature of such addressee or customer on his response to the advertisement.

In designing .a device of this character, it is most desirable that the 'letterhead after preparation be readily handled with a minimum of expense on ordinaryandwith ordinary die cutting machinery, without the necessity of making a multiple ply stock and without the need of using elaborate pasting machinery, and it4 is among the further objects of the present invention to make a device of this character, which by 5 means of standard simple die -cutting operations may be i'ormed so as to receive a return mailing piece, whether it be a postcard or an envelope, and which at the same time may be readily handled after die cutting by ordinary printing multigraphs, typewriters and the like, to apply thereto the desired advertising we: e.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a die cut letterhead of the type described which may be readily die cut, printed and multigraphed in large quantities without the necessity of .utilizing special machinery and with the assurance that the return postcards or envelopes may be readily inserted and applied to the mailing piece, without substantial diiilculty and with assurance that the elements will be properly assembled.

In accomplishing these objects, it has been found most satisfactory in the preferred form of the invention to provide a rectangular sheet of paper which exceeds the length or longitudinal dimension of the conventional letter-sheet by approximately one-third. 'I'his excess portion or extension at the upper end of the letter-sheet is folded back of` upper part of the letter sheet transversely so that approximately one-fourth of the entire area becomes a flap folded back on the remaining three-fourths of the sheet, andthe larger portion of the sheet becomes the area on which the advertisers name and address and message are to be printed, typewritten, multigraphed or. otherwise processed. f

When the sheet has been folded as described, the edge of the fold becomes the top of the letter sheet, and the area below the fold, on the side opposite to the folded-over flap, becomes the space for the advertisers name and address and message. Slits are formed in the sheet above and below the fold, that is, in the area which becomes the ap and in the area which carries the advertisers message, and these slits are in such position that when the flap is folded back as above described, a return postcard or envelope may be inserted between the flap and the larger portion of the sheet, and when so inserted, in correct relationship to the slits, it will be securely locked-in position as though in a pocket, and the name and address which has been typed or printed on thereturnpostcardwillbeseenthroushanaperture on the face of the letter portion of the sheet.

thus serving as thesalutatlon on the letter.

Moreover, the letterhead-,carrying the return postcard or return envelope may be readily enclosed in the ordinary type of window envelope in such a manner that the name and address applied to the return postcard or return envelope, as the signature of the addressee, will serve as the forwarding address.

In this preferred form of the present invention the portion of the sheet referred to as the flap is provided with a slit, either quarter circular or straight diagonal, while the upper portion of the sheetreserved for the message is slitted to provide a tongue, /tli/ Ytongue and the first-mentioned' slit together tending to hold the return postcard or return envelope firmly in position when the letter-sheet is folded.

According to another embodiment, the flap at the top of the letter sheet is omitted, and the reply post card or reply envelope is held by the tongue, by a V-shaped slit near the upper lefthand corner of the letter-sheet, and by a straight or quarter circular slit in such position that it will receive and hold the lower right-hand corner of the post card or envelope when either of them is inserted between the upper slit and the tongue, and brought into position with its lefthand edge ush with the left-hand edge of lthe letter-sheet.

In the drawings are shown several of the many possible embodiments of the present invention by way of illustration and not by way o f limitation, since many changes and modifications may readily be made all within the scope of the present invention. i

In the drawings,

Figs. 1 to 5 show one embodiment, Fig. 1 being a plan view of a die cut letterhead or lettersheet before printing in extending condition, Fig. 2 being a front view of the device in folded condition with the return mailing piece inserted, Figs. 3 and 4 being respectively transverse sectional views upon the lines 3-3 and 4--4 of Fig. 2, and Fig. 5 being a perspective view showing the folded letter-sheet-postcard combination of Fig. 2 enclosed in a window envelope.

Figs. 6 and '7 show another embodiment, Fig. 6 being a front view of the letterhead in extended position and with the return postcard in position therein and Fig. 7 being a perspective view of the folded letter-sheet and return device with the end of the letter-sheet broken away. 4

Figs. 8 and 9 are perspective views upon the lines 8-8 and 9--9 of Fig. 2 giving a clearer showing of the assembled and folded unit of Figs. 1 to 5.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 5, the letter-sheet A is provided with the extension or flap I8 and the of the flap I8 and being substantially parallel to the upper edge I9 at its lower end 28.

The slit I1 is designed to receive the corner 2| of the return postcard B (see Figs. 2 and 4). 'Ihe slit 48 has a central portion 22, parallel to the fold line I4 which curves as indicated at 23 into the perpendicular or vertical portions 24,

which terminate at 25. The left hand sides of the nap I8 and the body 88 are also cut out at 28.and 21 to form the nger-hold portions.

When the flap I8 is folded in back of the body 58, as indicated by the arrow 28 of Fig. 1, it will be readily possible to insert the return postcard B l between the flap I8 and the body 88, so that the card when inserted will be in front of the tongue 29 formed by the slit 48 and will project through the slit I1.

When the flap or extension I8 is folded inback of the body 58, the tongue 29 will be held in position thereby and the postcard B wi/ll/fbe positioned correctly by contact with the inside of the fold I4 (see Figs. Sand 4), with the ends I8 and 28 ofthe slot I1, and with the ends 25-25 of the slot 48 as indicated in Fig. 2.

s vIt will be noted that the height :o or the postserted is shown in Figs. 3 and 4. When the letterhead on sheet A is folded, three sections II, I2 and I3 are formed from the body 58 by the folds I5 and I6. It will be noted that the upper edge 33 of the postcard fits closely against the inside of the fold I4 when the flap I8 is folded in back of the body 58 (see particularly Figs. 3 and 4) so that the return postcard or envelope B will be held in position at its upper portion by the fold line I4 and at its lower edge by the slits I1 and 48. In this position the postcard B locks the flap I8 and the upper portion of the body 58.

The letterheads or sheets A are first die cut in the form as shown in Fig. l, as flat stock. If desired, two little bridges or connections 84' may be left in position to hold the flap 29 in position with the remainder of the sheet.

Stacks of these sheets maybe printed by ordinary press methods and the necessary advertising message is primarily applied to the body 58, although if desired, it may also be applied to the iiap I8. Upon the body 58 is most desirably applied the name'of the advertiser at about the position 35. The message is applied to the body 58 before folding of the flap I8 or the sections II, I2 and I3, then the sheets may be folded as indicated in Figs. .3 and 4 to form the iiap I8 or the iiap I8 and the sections II, I2 and I3.

The return postcards or envelopes B have been previously printed and the address of the prospect or customer has been applied to the portion 32 thereto as indicated in Fig. l2. The person assembling the device then will insert the return postcard or other device so that its upper edge rides inside of the fold I4 and so that its bottom corner passes in front of the tongue 29 and through the slit 48. When the postcard or other device is fully inserted, its lower corner 2| will have entered the slit I1 and be in contact with the ends I8 and 28 of said slit. Where bridges or connections 34 are used these may be broken before insertion of the return device.

When the end edge 38 of the postcard B touches the end 28 of the slot I 1, the operator will then be assured that the postcard or other return device is correctly in position locking the flap I8 and the body 58 together and at the same time itself being locked in position.

The finger recess portions 26 and 21 enable the postcard or other return device to be grasped at 48 and will enable ready removal thereof.

In Fig. 5 the completedvfolded assembly as indicated in Figs. 2 to 4 is shown inserted in the envelope C .which has a ilap 31 and a' window 3l which windowwill expose the address on the return postcard B. The envelope C, of course, may receive the name of the advertiser and his address at theV upper left hand corner as indicated at I9.

It is thus apparent that there is provided a new and unique mailing device which may be readily manufactured and die cut.l when they are to be printed, are not thicker in one place than in another, as will happen vwhen extra plies of paper are attached to the letterhead Ato form pockets. Moreover, the tongue 29 will not'interfere with the -printing operation even though in some cases the connections or bridges 34 are omitted. l

The postcard or other device B may be readily` inserted after printing in the slots l1 and 48 afterthe sections I0. and Ii have been folded together by the operator and the folded message may then be readily inserted in the envelope` C.

It is not necessary to address the letterheads A, nor the envelopes C, since the address on the return postcard B sufces for the address of the addressee or prospective customer. lThese may be prepared in advance and the name of the ad dressee and prospective customer only need be applied once to complete not only the salutation of the advertising message but also thesignature of the return postcard and the mailing address of the envelope C.A

The application ofthe recipients signature to the return postcard will attract attention, and

tend to assure a higher response than would or,-

dinarily be obtained with many other forms of direct mail advertising. When received by the addressee, the return postcard may be readily removed by grasping it at the portion 40. (See- Fig. 2.)

If desired instead of a postcard B, a return envelope may be employed and the. envelope may be so prepared that the recipient is to sign on the inside or back of the flap or on the inside face of the flap. In either case, the envelope may be so prepared so that when inserted the name of the addressee will appear at the position 32 indicated in Figs. 2 and 5 l It will be particularly noted although no pocket is formed by attachment of an extra ply, nevertheless the slots l1 and 48, together with the sections i0 and il, when folded together will automatically form a pocket, when the postcard or `other device is inserted and locked into position.

Moreover, although no paper has been cut away, nevertheless, a window will be formed exposing Vthe return address on the postcard. Furthermore,

the tongue 29 together with the slots il, form a lock which'is essential to proper retention of the card in correct position.

It is not possible for thelreturn postcard to shift in position after it has been iinserted in the assembly as indicated in Figs.; 2 to 4. The present assembly not only can be used for return presigned reply cards and return envelopes, but it also can be used for small booklets, folders or any other advertising piece of proper size and shape upon which the advertiser may desire to imprint the prospects `name in such a position that it will show through the opening in front of the letterhead and be used as a salutation on the letter.

Furthermore, it will be noted that all the op erations of producing a letter, that is printing, typewriting and multigraphing, may be carried out on the sheet A, as shown in Fig. 1, which is of aisaauo The letterheads,

uniform quality'and thickness throughout its entire area.

In the alternative embodimentsshown in Figs.

6 and 7, correspondingly functioning elements being designated by the same numerals as in Fig. 1 primed, a straight diagonal slit I'l is formed in the same section llas the slit y'48' and an extra slit 4|is provided having the two side portions As indicated in Fig. 6, the postcard B- is designed to be inserted in such a way that it will be exposed at 32', at 2| and at 43 in front of the tab 4l. The exposed portion 32 will correspond to the window 39 of the mailing envelope and by the construction shown in Fig. 6, it will be possible to eliminate thel extra section I0 of Fig. l. The construction, however, of Figs. 1 to 5 isusually preferred. i

`The straight slot I1 may also be employed in Fig. l, instead of the curved slot I1, but the curved slot i 1 enables more ready insertion of the return postcard B.

`the .portion inside of the slit I1 to cause said tongue and portion inside the slit to adhere to the areas carrying the adhesive 5I and 52. This will enable reader insertion by the party making the'assembly, since the tongue 29 andthe porf tion inside of theslit I1 will be held open to receive the return postcard or other return device. However, these adhesive areas are not necessary and may well be omitted.

It is also generally desirable that the connections or bridges 34, as indicated in Fig. 1 be broken before insertion of the postcard or other return mailing device.

It is to be understood that many changes, modiiications and variations may be made in the specie. details and construction shown upon the drawings in the views from Figs. 1 to`9 and it is intended that all such changes 'and modiiicaf tions will be included within the scope of the present invention insofar as they are included by the appended claims. l

What is claimed is:

l. A direct mail advertising device comprising a letterhead -of elongated rectangular form having a fold line adjacent the upper edge thereof, an upper portion of said letterhead below the fold line being provided with a slit having a central portion extending widthwise of the letterhead and two end portions extending vertically of the letterhead to form a wide short tongue in said upper portion, which tongue is Ydesigned to cooperate with a return mailing device to hold it in position in the letterhead and to expose the return address thereof, said letterhead above the fold line being alsoprovided With another slit into which the lower inside corner of the return postcard may be inserted.

2. A directmail advertising `devicefcomprising a letterhead of elongated rectangularform provided a fold line adjacent'the upper edgethereother slit for the corner of the postcard taking the form of a quarter circle, the upper end of which is adjacent the upper edge of the letterhead, and perpendicular to the upper edge of the letterhead and the lower end of which is parallel to the fold line. f

3. A direct mail advertising combination comprising a letterhead, a return mailing device and a window envelope, said letterhead having a plurality of sections separated from each other by fold lines and when folded being designed to be placed in said envelope, and being slitted to carry a return device and to expose the back portion of said return device at the place where the name and address of the prospect is applied, and also carrying said exposed portion of said device in such a position so as to match the window of the envelope, said letterhead being provided with four sections folded on one another and the uppermcst section being provided with a quarter circular slit, the upper end of which is adjacent and perpendicular to the upper edge of the letterhead, vand the lower end of which is parallel to the upper edge of the letterhead and said fold lines, said quarter circular slit being designed to receive thelower corner of the device and the next lower section being provided with a slit adjacent the left side thereof having a central portion, which is parallel to the fold lines and the end portions consisting of vertical extension slits, which terminate just above the lower fold line of said section, said last mentioned slits forming a short wide rectangular flap designed to be positioned behind the device when inserted so as to expose the name andl address of the recipient upon said device, the lower edge of the device being positioned in said slit in next to the uppermost sectiomand the lower inside corner of said device being positionedV in the slit in the uppermost section and said device locking said two upper sections together, said sections, together with said slits, forming a pocket for reception of the device.

4. The device of claim 3 in which said device is a return post-card.

5. A direct mail advertising device to be mailed out by an addressor comprising an envelope and a folded letterhead therein of elongated rectangular form having a fold line adjacent the upper edge thereof, an upper portion of said letterhead below the fold line being provided with a slit having a central portion extending widthwise of the letterhead and two end portions extending downwardly of the letterhead to form a wide short tongue in said upper portion, which tongue is designed to cooperate with a return mailing device to hold it in position in the letterhead both in folded and unfolded condition and to expose the addressees name thereon and address, said letterhead being also provided with Vanother slit into which an inside corner of the return postcard may be inserted, said addressees name and address on said device serving as the salutation of the unfolded letterhead.

6. A direct mail advertising device to be mailed out by an addressor comprising an envelope and a folded letterhead therein of elongated rectangular form providing a fold line adjacent the upper edge thereof, the upper portion of said letterhead being provided with a slit having a cen- Y tral poi-tion extending widthwise of the lettersheet and two end portions extending downwardly of the lettersheet to form a short wide tongue in said upper sectionl which tongue cooperates with one side of a return mailing device to hold it in position in the letterhead both in folded and unfolded condition, and to expose the ad dressees name thereon and address.. the fold upon said fold line holding the other side of the device in position, said addressees name and address on said device serving as the salutation of the unfolded letterhead. .v

7. A mailing piece to be mailed out by an addressor comprising a window envelope. a lettersheet of rectangular shape inserted in folded condition in said envelope, a rectangular return mailing device carrying the name and address of the addressee and carried by said lettersheet in such position that said name and address will vmatch the window of the envelope when the lettersheet is folded and will serve as a salutation when the lettersheet is unfolded, the upper portion of said lettersheet being slitted and receiving and carrying said device by said slitted portion. the upper portion of said letterhead being slitted to form a short wide flap leaving an' opening in said letterhead exposing said name and address when said flap is placed in back of said device and said device is placed in back of said sheet.

8.` A mailing piece to be mailed out by an addressor comprising a window envelope, a lettersheet of rectangular shape inserted in folded condition in said envelope, a rectangular return mailing device carrying the name and address of the addressee and carried by said lettersheet in such position that said name and address will match the window of the envelope when the lettersheet is folded and will serve as a salutation when the lettersheet is unfolded, the upper portion of said lettersheet being slitted and receiving and carrying said device by said slitted portion, the upper portion of said` letterhead being slitted to form a short wide flap leaving an opening in said letterhead exposing said name and address when said flap is placed in back of said device and said device is placed in back of said sheet, the ends of said flap engaging the lower edge of said device.

9. A mailing piece to be mailed out by an addressor comprising a window envelope, a lettersheet o f rectangular shape inserted in folded condition in said envelope, a rectangular return mailing device carrying the name and address of theaddressee and carried by said lettersheet in such position that said name and address will match the window of the envelope when the lettersheet is folded and will serve as a salutation when the lettersheet is unfolded, the upper portion of said lettersheet being slitted and receiving and carrying said device by said slitted portion, said slitted portion of said lettersheet forming a displaceable flap, which flap is displaced to the rear of said device when said sheet is in folded or unfolded condition to hold said device in position and to expose a portion of said device through the upper portion of the face of the lettersheet to serve as a salutation when the lettersheet is unfolded and to lserve as an address when the lettersheet is folded and inserte in the window envelope. i

GEORGE P. LEE. 

